Tag Archives: United Business Media

The Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board (SSAIB), the fire, security and telecare certification body, has taken just eight hours to fill all 70 places available at its upcoming Installer Forum, which powered by IFSEC International and hosted by BT Redcare.

The 2016 Installer Forum is one of many similar seminars being held by SSAIB around the UK and Ireland this year, and the 4 May London event will be SSAIB’s third consecutive annual visit to the prestigious BT Tower.

Kicking off with a wide-ranging and informative update on standards and other topics from SSAIB’s CEO, Alex Carmichael, the half-day seminar will move on to a review of signalling technology presented by BT Redcare. Professional solutions specialist Citation will then provide an overview of Health and Safety issues before handing over to Tony Porter, the Surveillance Camera Commissioner, for his own presentation.

There will also be points of view from both a security manager’s and an insurer’s perspective before the morning closes with a market insight session chaired by United Business Media.

Delegates will then be invited to lunch in the BT Tower’s famous 34th Floor revolving restaurant, which is over 500 feet above ground level.

“Our third Installer Forum at the BT Tower in May is part of the SSAIB’s rolling programme of regional seminar events and other exhibition attendances being held across Britain and Ireland,” commented the organisation’s sales and marketing manager Andrew Brown. “This year alone we’ve already been to Durham, Bolton, Rotherham, Essex and Canterbury. In early April, we also visited the Titanic Centre in Belfast before moving on to the Redcow Moran Hotel in Dublin.”

Brown continued: “On 13 April we’ll be welcoming delegates at Hampden Park in Glasgow for Expo Scotland, while the month rounds out at our North East Expo which is being held at Kingston Park, the home of Newcastle Falcons. In May, we’ll be at Expo West Midlands at Wolverhampton Racecourse. Just a month later, the SSAIB takes its annual stand at the three-day IFSEC International event being staged again at ExCeL London from 21-23 June.”

Get Safe Online, the UK Government and private sector-backed information service on Internet safety and security, is raising awareness of ‘social engineering’ scams through a new series of informative videos offering advice and tips.

A type of confidence trick, ‘social engineering’ is the use of deceit to manipulate or trick victims into certain actions including divulging personal or financial information. Examples include phishing e-mails and fraudulent phone calls asking for personal or financial information – known as ‘vishing’ – or phone calls from fraudsters impersonating computer technical support agents.

According to FFA UK, approximately 23% of people in the UK have received a cold call requesting personal or financial information, potentially putting them at risk of becoming a victim.

In the first five months of this year alone, some of the UK’s main High Street banks have reported losses of over £21 million from vishing attacks on their customers, with over 2,000 vishing attacks resulting in an average loss of over £10,000 per victim.

Social engineering exploits human nature and plays on victims’ emotions such as protecting themselves, their family and finances, gaining something of advantage or willingness to please others. It’s a factor in many types of fraud.

Schemes may be elaborate and highly convincing

Tony Neate, CEO of Get Safe Online, commented: “It’s important that the public are aware of what social engineering actually is, as there are so many types which can lead to the theft of your money or identity. It can be easy to fall prey to social engineering because schemes can be elaborate and highly convincing, with approaches usually made by somebody you think you should trust or appears to be in authority. It’s not just individuals who are likely victims, it’s also businesses.”

Get Safe Online – the UK Government and private sector-backed information service on Internet safety and security – is raising awareness of ‘social engineering’ scams through a new series of informative videos offering advice and tips

Neate added: “We hope that by raising awareness of how to avoid becoming a victim of social engineering through our online videos and activity with our partners, we can help prevent it from happening to others.”

Alasdair MacFarlane, head of customer security at NatWest, said: “NatWest is committed to providing safe and secure banking alongside an excellent level of customer service. Fraudsters are always looking for new ways to gain access to money which is why we offer our customers a Secure Banking Promise, as well as lots of advice on our website to help them avoid falling victim to a scam. We’re delighted to be working with Get Safe Online in raising awareness on this important issue.”

Dawn Cornwall, fraud and security manager at Lloyds Banking Group, explained: “At Lloyds Banking Group we are committed to making sure our customers’ Internet banking experience is as safe as possible. We use cutting-edge technology to protect their personal information and privacy. We also have our online guarantee in place if a customer experiences fraud in Internet banking and a wealth of advice and guidance on our websites. We’re really pleased to be working with Get Safe Online on the Social Engineering campaign.”

Alex Grant, Barclays’ managing director of fraud prevention, stated: “We’ve seen from our own interaction with customers who have fallen victim to social engineering frauds that the loss of hard-earned savings causes great emotional distress, as well as having a significant financial impact. This is why raising awareness about social engineering scams and protecting customers from fraud is one of our highest priorities. Barclays fully endorses this awareness campaign and we’re pleased that our sponsorship of Get Safe Online is helping provide consumer education and promote awareness of scams such as these.”

Detective Superintendent Peter O’Doherty is the head of the NFIB and Action Fraud. Speaking about the Get Safe Online initiative, he said: “The face of crime has significantly changed in recent years, with much of today’s offending being conducted not on a face-to-face basis but over the phone and through a computer. People need to be aware there are ruthless, calculating criminals using social engineering scams to obtain personal and financial information that makes them a profit and individuals and businesses the victims of crime. This multi-media Get Safe Online campaign will shine a light on these practices and help the public know when they are being targeted and the best ways in which to protect themselves.”

How to avoid becoming the victim of social engineering

Getsafeonline.org offers a number of tips on how to avoid becoming a victim of social engineering:

• Always be wary of people requesting confidential or personal information by whatever means, however convincing they may seem
• Never reveal personal or financial data including usernames, passwords, PINs or other forms of ID
• Be very careful that people or organisations to whom you are supplying payment card information are genuine, and then never reveal passwords. Remember that a bank or other reputable organisation will never ask you for your password via e-mail or a phone call
• If you receive a phone call requesting confidential information, verify that it’s authentic by asking for a full and correct spelling of the person’s name and a call back number
• Check the number matches the contact number on the relevant website. Even then, the criminal may have used special software to display the authentic number
• If you are asked by a caller to end the call and phone your bank or card provider, call the number on your bank statement or other document from your bank – or on the back of your card. However, be sure to use another phone from the one you received the call on to ensure that a fraudster is not on the line by having kept the call open. If you cannot access another phone, be sure to hang up for at least five minutes before you dial out, or call a friend (whose voice you recognise) before making another call
• Do not open e-mail attachments from unknown sources
• Do not readily click on links in e-mails from unknown sources. Instead, roll your mouse pointer over the link to reveal its true destination, displayed in the bottom left corner of your screen. Beware if this is different from what is displayed in the text of the link from the email
• Do not attach external storage devices or insert CD-ROMs/DVD-ROMs into your computer if you are not certain of the source, or just because you are curious about their contents

Now entering its eighth year of operation, Get Safe Online (www.getsafeonline.org) is the UK’s national Internet security awareness initiative.

A joint partnership between the UK Government, the National Crime Agency (NCA), Ofcom, law enforcement bodies and private sector sponsors from the worlds of technology, communication, retail and finance, the initiative continues to educate, inform and raise awareness of online security issues to encourage confident and safe use of the Internet.

Leading international counter-surveillance company Esoteric is broadening its global coverage by incorporating a new company in Dubai.

Based in the DMCC Free Zone in the Jumeirah Lakes Towers district, Esoteric Middle East will provide a range of specialist security services to corporate and Government clients in the MENA region and help achieve its goal of becoming the region’s leading counter-espionage service provider.

Specialising in providing end-to-end solutions that address the issues of corporate espionage, competitive intelligence gathering and the theft of information, Esoteric Middle East will focus on offering a full suite of counter-surveillance services including Technical Surveillance Countermeasures (TSCM), otherwise known as electronic bug sweeping, espionage and threat awareness briefings and TSCM training.

Emma Shaw CSyP: md at Esoteric

Esoteric’s managing director Emma Shaw CSyP, who’s also chairman of The Security Institute, explained: “We’re delighted and excited by this recent development in the company’s growth strategy. The new Dubai office strengthens Esoteric’s commitment to the region, and I know that our specialist and professional approach will be welcomed by clients across the Middle East.”

Audrey Bedford, head of sales and marketing at Esoteric, added: “We have identified a clear demand from clients in the Middle East where we have been working for some time now. It has become imperative that we establish a base close to where demand is strong. The new Dubai office is a further step in the development of our services in the region.”

Esoteric is a leading bug sweeping and covert surveillance company working discreetly with corporations, Government departments and high net worth individuals on a global basis to safeguard private information and conversations from illicit eavesdropping devices.

The company firmly believes in delivering a strategic approach that assists its clients in understanding the risks facing a given business. Esoteric works with its customers to implement Best Practice systems, policies and procedures and undertake appropriate measures to address the threat of potential, attempted and actual attacks from competitors, criminals, overseas agencies and employees.

The official launch of 100 in 100 2014 – the fourth annual drive to energise more brand new apprenticeships across the security world – took place at a special presentation held in the IFSECGlobal.com Centre Stage Theatre at IFSEC International 2014 on Wednesday 18 June.

100 in 100 aims to energise 100 or more new apprenticeships in the UK security sector within a 100-day timeline starting at IFSEC International 2014 (which ran from 17-19 June at ExCeL, London).

“Last year, the 100 in 100 campaign exceeded its target and even caught the eye of the Government with a personal letter of congratulations from Prime Minister David Cameron,” said Simon Banks, Group Managing Director at the CSL DualCom Group and the co-founder of 100 in 100.

“This publicity is crucial in order to keep employers’ minds focused on apprenticeships as a credible recruitment source. Employers must engage with apprenticeships and recognise how valuable an apprentice can be within their company in a relatively short time frame.”

Simon Banks: co-founder of 100 in 100

Banks also stated: “In just three years, the right candidate can become integral to the team and a great source of fresh ideas and skills. When you also factor in the potential skills gap predicted in the UK by 2020, it really is very important for employers to act now. Put simply, there has never been a better time to hire an apprentice.”

The political will is also there to make apprenticeships work. Matthew Hancock MP – the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Further Education, Skills and Lifelong Learning – is once again supporting the 100 in 100 campaign.

New apprenticeship opportunities in the UK security sector

Supporting the 2014 campaign are CSL DualCom and Skills for Security as well as the major inspectorates – the National Security Inspectorate and the Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board.

Also backing the apprenticeships drive are the British Security Industry Association, the Fire Industry Association and the Fire Protection Association.

As always, UBM Live’s Security and Fire Portfolio (with http://www.IFSECGlobal.com at its heart) is the campaign’s official media partner.

100 in 100 focuses on all types of apprenticeship, among them installation engineers, manufacturing engineers, business administration, Human Resources, marketing and PR.

Apprentices usually take around 18 months to gain Level 2 qualifications, with a further 18 months required to take the apprentice to a Level 3.

Employers embracing the opportunities on offer will be responsible for paying employment costs of at least the minimum wage (for 16-18 year-olds and 19-year-olds in the first year of their apprenticeship). Employers will also be required to provide work-based training within their companies.

Skills for Security has again committed to look after paperwork for those organisations willing to employ new apprentices, right from initial sign-up through to appointing the college or training provider.

The training and skills body will also draw down Government funding on each participating company’s behalf.

Why should your company take on apprentices?

According to the National Apprenticeship Service research undertaken in 2010, 77% of employers canvassed believe apprenticeships make them more competitive. The research also showed that 80% of employers believe apprenticeships reduce their staff turnover, while over 80% of consumers favour using those companies that take on new apprentices.

That’s why your company should take on apprentices NOW!

Richard Jenkins – CEO at the National Security Inspectorate (NSI) – commented: “It’s vital to engage with young people and encourage them to view our industry as a credible and rewarding career choice. The NSI’s mission is to raise standards in the industry and, to help achieve this, young enthusiastic talent must be nurtured in order to carry the industry forward in a professional manner. The NSI wholeheartedly supports the 100 in 100 initiative and encourages employers to seriously consider the many benefits that apprenticeships can bring to their businesses.”

Richard Jenkins: CEO at the NSI

Geoff Tate – Chief Executive of the Security Systems and Alarms Inspection Board (SSAIB) – added: “We’ve supported the 100 in 100 initiative since its inception and we’re delighted that it has been so successful. To ensure that the industry continues to service the market well, we need to make certain that the skills base of those just starting to work in the security sector is as good as it possibly can be. The success of this project is testament to the enthusiasm of all those involved, and to the resilience of the sector overall.”

Geoff Tate: CEO at the SSAIB

What the employers have to say

Speaking from the perspective of an employer fully committed to taking on apprentices, Anthony King – Managing Director at Kings Security – explained: “Kings Security has always believed in apprentice investment and, over the last 30 years, we have increased our intake each year. At the moment we average 50 apprentices every 12 months, and we’re proud to host an onsite Learning Centre.”

King continued: “By training an apprentice you’ll nurture an employee with the exact skill-set required by your business so the initial time spent training them pays dividends in the future. Many former apprentices now head up our teams of engineers. Kings Security is committed to continue our apprentice investment for future years.”

Kings Security’s managing director Anthony King

Another keen supporter of 100 in 100 is Lucy Banham, Director at The Banham Group. “At the Banham Group, we use the apprenticeship scheme to bring into the business young individuals who are keen to learn. It’s important for any company to safeguard their future by nurturing a variety of experience and ages within their workforce.”

Importantly, Banham added: “The fact that a potential apprentice has sought out an apprenticeship with your business shows an immediate level of commitment. They are prepared to go through training and college work in order to prove to us as an employer that they really want a job at the end of the process. We also find that apprentices are good, mature candidates as they have made this important career decision so early on.”

Telephone Skills for Security’s Customer Relations Team on 01905 744000 TODAY and play your part in the UK security apprenticeships drive for 2014.

IFSEC International is the largest security event to showcase a range of solutions for the entire security buying chain. Visitors are able to attend the IFSEC Academy and experience the wealth of education on offer from many industry leaders and experts in chosen disciplines.

IFSEC International 2014 is part of UBM’s Protection and Management 2014. Registration for IFSEC International is open and gives badge holders access to all the shows within Protection and Management 2014 including: FIREX International, The Facilities Show, Safety & Health Expo, Energy & Environment Expo and Service Management Expo.

In the latest Research Note from IHS, Justin Siller (manager of the security and building technologies group) informs on the global fire detection and suppression market.

Despite traditionally being slow to use new technologies, the fire market is starting to see increased interest in wireless and IP (Internet Protocol)-enabled products.

Wireless products have typically been used in specific applications where wiring is difficult (such as historical buildings), but outside of this the market has been virtually non-existent. Barriers such as reliability, price, variations in frequencies and installer reluctance have slowed adoption.

However, wireless is now beginning to be embraced. This is particularly true in the United Kingdom (UK) and Nordic countries.

Despite traditionally being slow to use new technologies, the fire market is starting to see increased interest in wireless and IP (Internet Protocol)-enabled products

IHS estimates some 25% of wireless product sales in Europe are taking place in the UK. End users are now willing to spend a bit more upfront for such solutions in exchange for lower installation costs as wiring is obviously unnecessary.

Focusing on the integrator/installer channel

The main barrier to mass-market adoption is the integrator/installer channel. Installers continue to be reluctant to market wireless products because they would need to complete more installations in order to realise the same financial returns as they do with wired installations.

That being the case, while end users see the benefits it remains the case that installers struggle to see any advantages.

For IP, increasing demand to integrate multiple building systems is driving acceptance. The managers of large facilities, centrally-managed chains and campus-style buildings want to connect multiple building systems together to gather higher levels of data on a single platform.

Surprisingly, most demand for these solutions is coming from the Middle East and South East Asia where legislation is more lax on integration standards. Here, building managers are integrating fire equipment with building management, security and lighting equipment to improve operational efficiencies and have fewer people reviewing/monitoring the information.

These moves are expected not only to increase the adoption for networked addressable panels but also enhance the adoption of more sophisticated communication channels such as IP and Modbus.

Demand for these technologies is expected to remain modest in the short-term. However, as other building technologies – such as access control, video surveillance, intruder alarms, building automation, elevators and visitor management systems – move to use wireless and IP-ready products, and are integrated, the fire industry may be hard-pressed not to follow suit.

Rock band Kasabian’s historic Summer Solstice homecoming gig in front of 50,000 fans massed at Leicester’s Victoria Park presented crowd management and event security specialist Showsec with the perfect opportunity to put on a ‘show’ of its own.

Showsec event stewards and managers debuted the company’s new uniform designs at the 21 June gig, which took place barely a stone’s throw away from the company’s Head Office in the city.

“It seemed entirely appropriate this should be the occasion when we used our new uniforms at a major event for the first time, and it certainly heightened the importance of the event to us,” explained Richard Church, Showsec’s regional manager for the Midlands. “We were proud to play such an important role in staging this historic event for the city of Leicester, which will always be remembered as an exciting step forward for the company.”

Kasabian: brilliant gig at Leicester’s Victoria Park

Church continued: “The new uniforms are a further representation of how we are continually looking to achieve excellence in service for both our clients and members of the public. All of the feedback has been extremely positive, and it’s quite apparent that our staff feel good about the new uniforms which can only enhance that level of service.”

First major concert in Victoria Park for a decade

Showsec’s strong presence at Victoria Park meant that there was predominantly a splash of yellow on the scene for Kasabian’s Summer Solstice event. A workforce of 450 staff was directed by a 62-strong team of management and supervisors put in place for what was a large-scale operation.

The new Showsec uniforms made their debut

“This was the first major concert in Victoria Park for more than ten years,” outlined Church. “The occasion was extra special for a number of other reasons, too.”

From Showsec’s point of view, one of the significant aspects of Kasabian’s homecoming gig – which hihglighted tracks from the band’s new album 48:13 – was that the event took place in the early stages of the security company’s new contract with Leicester City Council, who had collaborated with Live Nation to make the concert happen.

“The operation had its challenges, largely due to the lively audience and the park design, but the event was an overwhelming success,” enthused Church. “We worked closely with Leicestershire Police on crime reduction measures and the feedback from them was very complimentary, as indeed it was from the local authorities and others involved in the organisation.”

As always, the Showsec event stewarding operation was excellent and drew much praise

Kasabian put on a great show, featuring lots of classic tracks including Shoot The Runner, Underdog, Empire, Processed Beats and Club Foot (the latter two tracks from their excellent debut album).

American Dynamics (part of the Security Products business unit of Tyco), has released version 4.5 of its powerful, high-performance VideoEdge NVR. New features provide customers with more secure and efficient systems for businesses requiring an active surveillance environment.

VideoEdge Network Video Recorder (NVR) adds a new level of ease and efficiency for surveillance operators. With features such as Auto Discovery, users can locate cameras on the network and assign IP addresses to any VideoEdge NVR with the click of a button.

“The changing landscape for surveillance is dictating a new list of ‘must-haves’,” said Steve Carney, director of video product line management for Tyco Security Products. “This latest version of VideoEdge responds to those security-critical situations with effective, reliable and intuitive tools.”

Carney added: “We’re focused on providing the unique features required by customers who rely on their surveillance systems for fast, real-time incident response.”

Such customers include security managers in retail environments who are looking for solutions to theft as well as data that helps them better understand customer behaviour.

VideoEdge NVRs now boast new features

VideoEdge provides both. Its powerful Heat Mapping tool means that retailers may spot where customers are lingering – important information that lets retail marketers see where the hot items are, or where they may need additional promotional displays.

This feature is also very useful in other vertical markets such as sports and entertainment, healthcare and other venues for tracking foot traffic patterns, thus ensuring visitors are receiving adequate assistance.

Inclusion of a new Watermarking process

The latest version of VideoEdge also includes a new Watermarking process that allows security officials to assign a unique visual mark to the video that’s specific to its business. This maintains the integrity of recorded video and protects the owner from fraudulent use of the video.

The victor Unified Client helps end users manage all of their live and recorded video from VideoEdge, exacqVision, Intellex and ADTVR video recording solutions from one intuitive interface. victor is part of a powerful NVMS that includes advanced policy management, health monitoring, Smart Search, instant playback and more, ensuring the security and safety of the entire organisation whether a single site or a multi-location, globally dispersed enterprise.

For those enterprise customers who use Software House C•CURE 9000, victor Enterprise provides unification for SAS (satellite application server) and MAS (master application server). Deploying victor and C•CURE 9000 software at the same time and into the same IP system has never been easier.

For those customers at smaller sites, victor Express has been designed to eliminate the need for an SQL database, thus simplifying and saving on installation time.

The VideoEdge NVMS and victor Unified Client are available through American Dynamics’ worldwide channel partners.